Zhang was born and raised in Beijing, China. Her parents were Zhang Yuanxiao, an accountant and later economist, and Li Zhousheng, a kindergarten teacher.[2][3] She is very close to her older brother, Zhang Zinan (Chinese: 章子男; pinyin: Zhāng Zǐnán; born 1973). Zhang began studying dance when she was 8 years old; subsequently, she joined the Beijing Dance Academy by her parents' suggestion at the age of 11.[4] While at this boarding school, she noticed how mean the other girls were to each other while competing for status amongst the teachers. Zhang disliked the attitudes of her peers and teachers so much that, on one occasion, she ran away from the school.[3] At the age of 15, Zhang won the national youth dance championship and began appearing in television commercials in Hong Kong.[5]

Zhang's first appearance in an American movie was in Rush Hour 2.[8] Her character's name is "Hu Li", which is Mandarin Chinese for "Fox".

Zhang then appeared in Hero (2002) with her early mentor Zhang Yimou. The film was commercially successful in the United States and was nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe award in the category of Best Foreign Language Film.

Zhang has also been known to sing, and was featured on the House of Flying Daggers soundtrack with her own musical rendition of the ancient Chinese poem, Jia Rén Qu (佳人曲, The Beauty Song). The song was also featured in two scenes in the film.

In January 2010, it was announced she had plans to produce a film adaptation of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan; however, it was announced that she had turned down the role due to a busy schedule.[11]

In July 2010, plans were revealed for a live-action version of the Chinese folk tale of Hua Mulan, previously popularized to western audiences by Disney through their 1998 animated movie.[12] The film was to be directed by Jan de Bont, and would star Zhang as the titular heroine. Shootings were scheduled to begin in September 2010,[13] but ultimately did not commence due to insufficient financial resources.[14] The current status of the project is unknown.

On 27 September 2012, the Chinese-Korean co-production Dangerous Liaisons, an adaptation of the French novel Les Liaisons Dangereuses, narrating Shanghai of the 1930s, released in China. Zhang starred next to Cecilia Cheung and Jang Dong-gun in this film. It was reported Zhang was paid 20 million RMB (approximately $3.5 million) for her role.[17]

Soon after Zhang's debut in Zhang Yimou's The Road Home, rumors arose regarding a possible affair between the actress and the older director. Yimou was previously rumored to be involved in an affair with actress Gong Li, whom he similarly debuted and with whom Ziyi was quickly compared. However, no relationships were ever confirmed.[27]

Zhang was engaged to Aviv "Vivi" Nevo, a venture capitalist. They separated in late 2010:

“

I grew up in a very traditional Chinese environment with lots of love, and I hope my own family would be the same. I want everyone to live together, with kids running around, and dogs playing with the kids. This is my ideal family life. I tried to make it work but it didn't, and I have no regrets over it.[28]

”

In the July 2006 issue of Interview magazine, Zhang Ziyi spoke of her movies' contents and being careful about the roles she takes on, especially in Hollywood:

“

Yes. Otherwise I could have done a lot of Hollywood movies. After Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon I got a lot of offers, but I turned them down because they were all victim roles—poor girls sold to America to be a wife or whatever. I know I have the ability to go deeper, to take on more original roles than that. That's why I really appreciated Geisha, because it allowed us to show the world what kind of actors we are and what kind of characters we can play—not just action, kick-ass parts.[29]

”

Zhang obtained Hong Kong residency through the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme for her contribution to the local film industry.[30] After several screen performances in 2010 and beginning of 2011, in May 2011 Zhang was named ambassador for the ScreenSingapore 2011 film festival, joining American director Oliver Stone.[31]

Zhang began dating CCTV host Sa Beining beginning in 2011,[33] but the two later split.[34] Zhang is currently in a relationship with Chinese rock artist Wang Feng. Wang openly spoke of his love for Zhang during his concert in Shanghai in November, 2013.[35] After 2 years of dating, Wang proposed to Zhang on her 36th birthday.[36]